Resuscitations
by Aza White
Summary: What if, instead of being childish, the MC had a better reason to choose Atsumu (AKA Boss)? What if that reason had a name? (Sorry if the details are off; it's been a while since I played Atsumu's route.) Previously a one-shot titled "Explanations."
1. Explanations

I couldn't get over the fact that my great-grandfather, who I had only known as "Gramps" had been the Japanese Leonardo Da Vinci. As a museum curator I had of course heard of the legendary Da Vinci, but I never guessed that he was Gramps. Add to that overload of information with the assigning of a guard from a ring of thieves, and, well, my brain was exhausted. I took a glance around the room, seeing the faces of the five men that wanted me to pick a "bodyguard." Something deep inside me wanted to scream.

Taking a deep breath, I again surveyed their faces, careful to not miss a single change of their expression. Some of them looked fed up with my indecision, so I immediately striked them off the list. That left three: Hiro, Kenshi, and the Boss. No, Hiro was too lecherous, and Kenshi looked too much like Satoshi, so that left one.

"Then I guess I pick Boss." I spoke hesitantly, and there was even more awkward silence. Then the older man grinned widely, and the others groaned in various degrees of disgust or frustration. Boss opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off. "But only because I have certain questions to ask that I doubt any of the rest of you will answer. And also because I demand certain levels of formality the rest of you are unlikely to give me."

Hiro pouted. "You don't trust us? Koharu, I thought we had something between us."

"The only thing I want between us is a steel wall. Without windows." I continued, giggling a little on the inside at his shocked expression. "And why should I trust you? You just kidnapped me at gunpoint! I think I have the right to be a little wary right now!"

I turned to Boss. "Look, I'm tired and exhausted and quite frankly, I don't really care about what you want right now. Take me home."

He frowned, as the rest of the gang shifted menacingly. "I'm sorry, but you're going to have to stay with us for a while. I know this is a lot to deal with, but there's a room upstairs where you can crash."

Crash? Like I'm some irresponsible teen? Seething inside, I calmed myself down by counting to ten. And then twenty. By twenty-five, I gave up. "Fine," I spat out, crossing my arms. "At least let me go home to grab a few things. If you're _so_ worried about my running away, or blabbing to the police or whatever, just come with."

Boss frowned, and the blond (Takuto, was it?) snarked out a "No way. Idiot."

Just as I whipped my head around to deal with him, Boss put a warning hand on my shoulder. I flinched slightly, but he didn't take his hand off. "Now, now, Takuto," he said. "It's all right. I don't see the harm if one of us goes with her. It won't be like she'll be alone."

* * *

Boss drove me to the apartment complex I moved into a few years ago. I sighed, thinking of all the good times I had in the previous apartment. The older man pulled the van into a vacant parking spot and parked. Quickly getting myself together, I unbuckled my seatbelt and was out of the vehicle before he had a chance to issue any warnings about running. I stood pacientely by the door, waiting for Boss to get out. We walked in silence inside the building and to my floor. I welcomed him into the small sitting room, put on a pot of tea, and began to pack.

The boys (for even though they were older than me, had far less experience) had somehow managed to grab enough clothes for about a week, though I shuddered to think of any one of them going through my drawers. I grabbed a traveling bag, opened it, and threw in some basic essentials: toothbrush, comb, deodorant. I also tossed in a pair of pajamas, a spare set of clothes, and extra socks. When I checked to make sure I had everything, I remembered that old photo album I had of Satoshi and me. Pulling it from under the bed, I clutched it to my heart and began to cry. _Satoshi..._

"A-ahem." I glanced up with blurry eyes to find Boss leaning in my doorway. I flushed instantly. For him to see me like this...

"S-sorry," I squeaked, hastily shoving the album into the depths of my bag. "I shouldn't have left you alone so long. How rude of me."

"No, it's fine. Are you okay?" He seemed genuinely concerned, but I shrugged him off. If they didn't know about Satoshi, there was no need to inform them.

"I-I'm fine, don't worry about me!" I forced a bright smile onto my face. "Just let me clean up and I'll be ready to go."

"Okay..." He trailed off, probably completely and utterly lost at the idea of comforting a sobbing woman. "Let's go."

* * *

A few days after I moved into Le Renard Noir, Boss asked me to help with shopping. Just as we split up, I spotted Ranko. Feeling nervous about having to explain shopping in a different district than normal, I avoided her the best I could, but eventually, as Ranko always does, she spotted me.  
"Koharu Haranda Ojima! What are you doing here?!" Ranko pounced on me, and across the store I saw Boss glancing up at the exclamation. Great, now I have to explain having two last names.

"Ranko, how good to see you! Funny running into you here! Well, I was shopping but now I'm done, so now I'm going to go, bye!" I tried pushing my cart around her but she stopped it without looking away from my eyes.

"Koharu, just tell me why you're shopping in this district."

"I could ask the same as you!"

Ranko huffed. "I'm here to investigate some supermarket robberies in the area. Now answer the question."

I hesitated. "Well, I—"

Boss suddenly appeared from behind me. "She was helping me shop for my restaurant. I own the bar you two ladies went to the other night."

Ranko suddenly smiled. "Oh, I see! Koharu, you got yourself a boyfriend! Did you spend the night? Finally!"

She _didn't_ just go there. I tried to stay calm, but my voice cracked. "Ranko..." It became too much, and the tears started flowing. "E-excuse me, I-I..." I turned and fled, barely noticing Boss's and Ranko's questioning glances and pleas to remain.

Somehow, I wasn't surprised that my half-coherent purchases and wanderings led me to the Western-style graveyard where Satoshi had been buried. I found his grave with my eyes blinded by tears, just as I had all those years before. Sitting with my legs tucked into my chest, I rocked there for an endless amount of time. Just as the sun began to fall in the sky, I heard feet pounding towards me. I glanced up to see Boss running straight for me.

"W-what were you thinking, running off like that? Do you have any idea how worried I was when you stormed off? Did you even think about—" Boss panted heavily, but stopped when he saw my face. "Are—are you all right, Haranda?" He called me by my maiden name out of habit, having known nothing else, but in my affected state, hearing it made me sob harder.

"I-I-I..." My words jumbled in my throat and Boss awkwardly sat down next to me and put an arm around my shoulder. At first, I flinched at the contact—here, of all places!—but soon accepted his touch as what it was meant as: simple comfort. Boss leaned forwards a bit to read the gravestone.

"Satoshi Ojima, loving husband. Ojima..." He looked startled, remembering Ranko's exclamation. Seeing his startled face through my tears sobered me a little. I nodded in response to his unasked question.

"Yes. Satoshi was my husband. He died a few years ago in a car accident. It would have been our fifth anniversary next week."

"Oh." Boss looked speechless. "But aren't you only twenty-four?"

I smiled sadly. We used to get that a lot. "Yeah. We married young. Knew who we'd love in ten years, thirty. He would have been twenty-seven." Suddenly the tears started anew. Somehow, I found myself crying into Boss's chest, while he gently stroked my hair. Darn, did this feel good. How long had it been since I'd allowed myself to be comforted by someone else?

"...C'mon, let's get you back to Le Renard Noir." Boss helped me to my feet and I nodded without really hearing his words.

* * *

Once the two of us turned a street corner, Le Renard Noir came into view, with four people peering inside. I instantly recognized them to be the Black Foxes, what with Hiro's outstanding orange hair and Takuto's blond. Then Kenshi turned, saw Boss and me, and immediately notified the others. I found myself cowering into Boss's tall figure, suddenly self-aware of the tear tracks down my face and my puffy eyes. Boss wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and I could instantly see the shock on the thieves' faces.

Naturally, Takuto was the first to speak. "Nasty..."

The others averted their eyes except for Riki, whose jaw was slack in amazement. Boss gently pushed them aside as he unlocked the door. He ushered me inside, and I quickly ran upstairs and to the bathroom, where I hurriedly washed my face. I took a few deep breaths and went downstairs.

"—was that about?!" Hiro exclaimed as I entered the restaurant. Boss looked reassurdly at me.

"None of your business, Hiro," I said calmly. "Or any of your business, for that matter." Riki glared at me.

"Whatever it was, it caused our meeting to be held late. We deserve at least an explanation for your tardiness."

I sat down heavily and sighed. "Fine. Boss was just helping me with a personal issue that is resolved now. It won't happen again. I apologize."

Riki and Takuto eyed me suspiciously, and Hiro did so too, but at least Kenshi seemed to believe the partially true story. Boss mouthed "sorry" over their heads. I shook my head imperceptibly. It was fine. They were only boys, after all.

That night, instead of heading straight to sleep as had become my custom, I stayed up to look through my photo album. Cased behind layers plastic covering, the pictures started when we were both kids, and gradually progressed to a photo taken when Satoshi proposed—right after my high school graduation. I didn't even notice I was crying until fat teardrops blurred the photo into swirls of color.

A creaking of the bed alerted me to Boss's presence. I tried to compose myself, but once he looked me in the eyes, I knew the effort was useless.

"Hey, if you want to talk..." Boss let the invitation die down, but I gladly took it.

"I was twenty-two. Satoshi had just celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday. We were walking home from the college where I was getting my four-year degree in art appreciation. And..." My voice cracked. "We were crossing the street. Some drunk driver came roaring down the road. Satoshi...he-he pushed me far away from him and then..." I couldn't go on any further and broke down sobbing.

"There, there. It's okay." Boss kept murmuring little comforting nothings, and soon I fell asleep to the best night I'd had in years.


	2. Revelations

Revelations

A few days' worth of awkward days of living with Boss passed after that turbulent evening. We skirted around each other, and when he addressed me, it was by my first name. Thankfully, he never added a silent "Ojima" to the end, as if in accusation. I became accustomed to the vigorous mornings working on my feet and the late nights with the Black Foxes. We had already stolen both a priceless book and an empty flash drive. Sometimes after rather trying days (which were often), I'd dream of Satoshi's death. Usually, I woke up screaming and in a cold sweat.

After the rather unsuccessful mission to the lab, it was decided that I, along with Boss, would go undercover in the Friends of the People Church. Everyone had looked shocked about the man's involvement, but I didn't ask any questions. Making the one person who knew my secret angry might have resulted in disaster. Or, more accurately, the Black Foxes finding out. Boss took me aside before the mission.

"Koharu."

I started at the serious tone in his usually cheerful voice. "Yes, Boss?"

"I know you're still relatively new to this whole lifestyle, and if were up to me, I'd never let you go on such a dangerous mission. However, this also affects the other guys, and so I can't really protest. Don't worry, I—"

"I'll be fine," I rushed the words out, not wanting a man to ever again swear protection. "I can take care of myself."

"...Okay." Boss frowned worriedly, and I almost felt bad for him. Almost.

The next day, we approached the cultists' headquarters and quickly gained entrance. I gazed in appreciation at Boss's smooth talking. I'd never have gotten past the first sentence before the cultists would be on us. Satoshi always said I couldn't lie to a cat, I was so hopelessly honest. Trailing slightly after Boss, I steeled myself for whatever came next. It wasn't exactly what I was expecting.

Our guide led us to a huge gym, full of other people dancing...but not quite. It was obviously choreographed, yet it looked so messy I couldn't tell what they were doing. Boss immediately threw himself into the dance. Only a few sharp words from our dancing leader prodded me into dancing, albeit in a corner. After a couple minutes, the other cultists were too busy dancing to notice us, and Boss and I sneaked down the corridor and up the stairs to a room labeled "SECRET ROOM."

I gaped. "There's no way that that's real. Right?"

Boss shrugged. "You never know." He swung the door open. "It's either really stupid or super smart." The room was filled with documents and a big computer on the far wall. My jaw dropped.

* * *

After a quick scan of the computer ("Friends?" What kind of password is that?), we heard footsteps and took cover behind a curtain. I nearly fell, but Boss caught me and held me against his chest. At first I squirmed a bit—at the graveyard was one thing, but this?—but soon I realized more was at stake than my loyalty to Satoshi. A cultist quickly checked the room, switched off the lights, and shut the door. I jumped out of Boss's arms like they were on fire. Looking around to distract me from my embarrassment, I caught a glimpse of a box with the words "SUPER IMPORTANT" written on it. Thinking of the easiness of finding the room, I made my way over to it. Inside lays a folder labeled "SECRET TREASURE OF THE JAPANESE LEONARDO DA VINCI."

"Okay, now I'm seriously scared of these people," I said, gesturing for Boss to check things out. He flipped through a few pages and grabbed the entire folder.

"Are they making fun of us?" Boss mutters to himself. "Geez, back in the old days, people were relatively clever about hiding top secret information."

I tried the door. "It's locked!"

Boss grabbed an object sort of like a small cell phone out of his pocket. BEEP. I can tell now that it's some sort of transmitter, and so I stay quiet while Boss makes a call to Takuto. He hung up and invited me to sit down.

"It's been a long time since I went on a mission, so I'm glad it went well. I felt a little rusty."

I cocked my head. "Getting locked in a room with no way out is going well?"

He smiled. "Pretty much. We got in easy, got the data we needed, and all in all, this is a small setback."

"Hmm." I remembered the talk from last night, and the boys' shock at Boss participating in the mission. "Boss..."

"Yeah?"

I hesitated, not wanting to offend him. "Um...last night, everybody looked really surprised when you said you'd come with me. Why?" Boss remained silent. "I mean, you don't have to tell me or anything, I was just curious."

"...No, it's okay. I, uh, I'm kinda in the same situation you are. A long time ago, I was really one of the most active thieves in Japan. But my wife, who had always been ill, passed away while I was on a mission. I had been super obsessed with it for a long time, and hadn't really spent much time with her. So, I decided to not go on missions anymore and to just run the Black Foxes from Le Renard Noir."

My heart twisted painfully hearing his story. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't have asked." I didn't try to console him or offer apologies or those empty comments that mean nothing. They just hurt more than the actual grief and pain of losing the one person you loved the most.

"Don't worry about it." Boss tried for a pained smile. "She didn't want me to worry about her, and I didn't want her to worry about me. I never even told her I was a thief. Besides, it was a long time ago."

Tears started rolling down my cheeks. Here was someone else who had lost the most important person in their life. Boss gently wiped my tears away.

"You're such a caring person. I think she would have been happy to see someone crying for her like this. But please don't cry anymore."

I nodded. My vision blurred and I laid my head down against his shoulder. It felt nice. Instead of feeling like I was betraying my husband, I seemed to recognize that I was giving comfort as much as I was getting it.

* * *

"...Koharu."

I opened my eyes blearily, then jumped up in surprise. Kenshi and Hiro were surrounding Boss and me. Oh! I must have fallen asleep on Boss's shoulder.

Standing up, I looked steadily at the dark-clothed boys. Hiro was grinning suggestively, and I made a mental note to deal with him later. The four of us sneaked easily out of the building, where Kenshi drove us back to Le Renard Noir.

Boss handed the data to Takuto, who quickly organized it while we ate a light dinner. I wondered if any of the other Black Foxes noticed their leader's forced cheerfulness. Thankfully, Boss did not go into any detail of what happened in the so-called "SECRET ROOM." Takuto soon called over to us.

"It's an application of the formula from the book we borrowed. The formula is for a liquid that can melt stone." The thieves went into a heavily technical talk about the uses for such a substance. I simply watched Boss as he studied the data. Just as the discussion came to a close, I got a phone call from Mitsuru.

"Hi, Koharu! I just wanted to call and say the investigation's been closed, so the museum's being re-opened tomorrow."

I grinned widely, then realized he couldn't see me. "That's great news!"

"You'll be there, right?"

"No, actually." My grin faltered as I remembered the date. "I have something planned."

Mitsuru paused for a moment, then comprehended. "It's that time of year, isn't it? Yeah, I'll tell the boss."

"Thanks Mitsuru. I owe you a day."

"No problem. Have a good evening."

"You too."

After I hung up, the boys looked at me in confusion. I explained that the museum was going to re-open the next day.

"So why aren't you going?" asked Riki.

"I have something planned," I snapped, not wanting to go into details. "If you'll excuse me..."

That night, when Boss came in to make sure I was alright, I hesitated, but asked him what was on my mind.

"Would—would you mind terribly if you came with me tomorrow. It's Satoshi's and my anniversary tomorrow, and I was planning on heading to his grave."

He looked shocked, but then a look of understanding came over his face. "Sure."


End file.
